Human Rights Policy

International Workplace Group (IWG)

Purpose

International Workplace Group (‘IWG’) recognises the importance of fair treatment and fundamental human rights for all. We are committed to respect and promote human rights and conduct ourselves in an ethical manner. IWG’s Human Rights Policy outlines the principles which we adhere to, seeking to ensure no adverse impacts on our employees, customers, supply chain partners or communities in which we operate. We expect our supply chain partners and any other partners we work with to protect and respect human rights in line with international frameworks to the extent applicable to their operations.

As a responsible business we endeavour to ensure we do not infringe upon the human rights of others. We believe that all humans should be treated fairly and with respect.

Scope

This policy applies to all IWG employees, contractors, customers, landlords, building owners, supply chain partners and our local communities.

Protecting the rights of our employees

IWG is committed to ensuring that IWG employees are protected from human rights violations and have fair and equitable access to opportunities at work. We strive to ensure health, safety, security and ethical treatment of our employees and contractors throughout our global network.

Equal Opportunities, Anti-Harassment and Discrimination

IWG is committed to creating a work environment free of harassment and bullying and that treats everyone with dignity and respect. IWG expects that there will be no unjust to prejudicial treatment of peoples, on the basis of, but not limited to, racial and ethnic origin, colour, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, age, religion, political opinion, national extraction or social origin. Further information can be found in IWG’s Equal Opportunities Policy.

Labour Rights

IWG is committed to ensuring fair labour rights and human rights are promoted and protected across our workforce by:

  • Ensuring working hours are aligned with the minimum standards, local, national and international regulations. Please refer to our Working Hours Policy for further information.
  • Providing our employees with the right to freedom of association and collective bargaining. Please refer to our Freedom of Association Policy for further information.
  • Not tolerating and actively working to prevent any acts of modern slavery or human trafficking. Please refer to our Modern Slavery Act Statement for further information.

Health and Safety

IWG aims to consistently provide a healthy and safe working environment for our employees to support health, wellbeing and engagement. We do this by providing and maintaining safe and healthy working conditions. We encourage all employees to act safely through discussion, training, monitoring and ensuring a safe and inclusive working environment. Please refer to our Employee Wellbeing Policy for further information.

Protecting the rights of our customers

IWG expects our customers to meet international standards where laws and regulations may not offer protection against discrimination, harassment or abuse. Where standards are in conflict, we expect our customers to adhere to national laws, while seeking way to respect international human rights to the greatest extent possible.

Equal Opportunities, Anti-Harassment and Discrimination

IWG is proud to serve our customers through a broad range of workspace options via distinctive brand offerings and locations, all embracing the principles of a safe and inclusive work environment - free from discrimination, harassment, or abuse.

Health and Safety

IWG is committed to ensuring a healthy and safe working environment for all customers through established roles across the IWG centre teams, maintenance of a ‘Crisis Management and Disaster Recovery Manual’ and frequent health and safety checks across our business lounges and common areas.

Data Protection

IWG strives to ensure that customers', colleagues' and partners' privacy and data are protected and respected by IWG and any third parties. We are committed to protecting and safeguarding any data provided by our customers and act in a transparent way. Our Client Privacy Policy states how we process and protect all personal data.

Protecting rights across our supply chain

IWG expects all suppliers to adhere to our Supplier Code of Conduct and conduct activities in a manner that protects and respects human rights in line with international frameworks to the extent applicable to their operations. This includes:

  • Establishing a safe, respectful and inclusive workplace for their employees.
  • Creating a work environment where all individuals have equal opportunities and are treated with dignity and respect.
  • Conducting activities in a manner that respects human rights.
  • Ensuring through our Supplier Code of Conduct that under no circumstances should a supplier use forced labour.
  • Providing fair wages which meet or exceed the legal minimum standards and ensuring working hours are reasonable.
  • Providing employees with a safe workplace, as per local health and safety laws and regulations.
  • Ensuring under no circumstances should a supplier employ individuals under the local legal minimum age for work or mandatory schooling.
  • Providing the right to freedom of association and collective bargaining.

IWG oppose all forms of modern slavery, servitude, forced labour, child labour and human trafficking and vet our business partners and supply chain. We do this by:

  • Communicating expectations transparently and providing guidance to suppliers where required.
  • Providing mechanisms and channels for reporting grievances.
  • Monitoring and auditing supplier performance frequently.
  • Collaborating with suppliers to address non-compliance and drive continuous improvement.

For further information on what IWG expects from our supply chain partners, please refer to the Supplier Code of Conduct and the Modern Slavery Act Statement.

Protecting the rights of our local communities

Just Transition

IWG is committed to supporting an ethical and fair transition to a low-carbon and nature-positive economy. We aim to protect people from inequality or vulnerability, ensure fair opportunities during change, and uphold human and labour rights across our value chain.

We will aim to:

  • Distribute responsibility for emissions reduction fairly across operations and suppliers.
  • Mitigate adverse human or community impacts of our transition plans.
  • Provide training to employees on sustainability issues and emerging best practices.
  • Engage with customers, suppliers, and partners to raise awareness of environmental and social topics.
  • Respect land and resource rights of local and Indigenous communities.

Further information can be found in our Stakeholder Engagement Policy and Just Transition Commitment.

Reporting Unethical Behaviour

Any concerns about human rights including discrimination or harassment, can be raised with a member of the local community team or via our independently operated ethics portal.

Roles and Responsibilities

IWG supports public policies and laws that promote diverse, inclusive and safe workspaces with accessibility for all. All IWG employees have access to relevant training to encourage compliance with local laws whilst also having access to open and anonymous systems to share issues via our ethics portal which is operated by an independent third party.

Compliance

IWG endeavours to comply with all applicable laws and meet all regulations on a local, national and international level to ensure no human rights are violated across our direct and indirect operations.

Compliance with the Human Rights Policy will be monitored by IWG’s Procurement and HR team Non-compliance may be escalated in accordance with IWG’s internal risk management practices.

References

We follow the below international standards and use these to inform and guide our commitments:

Policies:

Revision

This policy is reviewed annually and updated in line with evolving best practice, and regulatory requirements.